Outdoors notebook

Boating arrests: Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency officers made 20 Boating Under the Influence arrests and issued 353 citations for infractions during Operation Dry Water over the July 4 holiday weekend.

The majority of the BUI charges involved alcohol, although officers reported a few were for the possession/use of illegal drugs.

There were five boating accidents resulting in four non-fatal injuries, and 483 boaters required some sort of assistance from officers.

The TWRA will continue its summertime crackdown on impaired boaters and other dangerous activities on the state’s increasingly-crowded lakes.

Boating rules and requirements – including a mandatory boating-safety course for boaters over a certain age -- are listed in the Tennessee Boating Guide, available for free at most outdoors outlets.

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Top shot: Colton Tuck shot a perfect round of 50 to win last week’s trap shoot at the Cedar City Gun Club.

For information about Gun Club activities, or the Cedar City Straights interscholastic trap team, contact Kerry Hale at 615-519-2934.

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Elk permit deadline: July 26 is the deadline for submitting applications for October’s elk hunt. They can be submitted on-line at tnwildlife.org, under WMA Big Game Quota Hunts.

Six gun permits will be issued through a draw and a seventh permit auctioned off on e-bay. Seven archery permits will also be issued, and one youth permit.

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State record gobbler: Huntington hunter Cord Maddox this spring bagged the biggest Tennessee turkey on record.

Although the TWRA does not keep records for turkeys, it recognizes records certified by the National Wild Turkey Federation. The TWRA posted a video about the Huntington turkey on tnwildlife.org.

NWFT records are determined by a combination of a bird’s weight, spur length and beard length.

Last fall Lebanon’s Brittnee Reynolds took a turkey with a bow that was certified by the NWTF as a state archery record, and also as an overall state record in the women’s category.

State and national records are posed on the NWTF website, along with information about how to submit a turkey for record consideration.

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Trout input: The TWRA is seeking input from fishermen about its trout management program. Comments and suggestions can be mailed to the Agency office in Nashville or submitted via email. Details are available on the TWRA website.

OUTDOORS CALENDAR:

Aug. 26: squirrel season opens

Sept. 1: dove season opens

Oct. 14-27: fall turkey season

Nov. 4-17: muzzleloader season

PHOTOS WELCOME: Share your favorite outdoors photos with readers of The Lebanon Democrat by e-mailing them to areed@lebanondemocrat.com.